2019: My year in books

2019 was my first year of jumping into the indie publishing world. This also meant doing A LOT of market research.

I've learned SO MUCH about the indie book world, it's amazing. It seriously feels like an entirely separate universe for books. The readers are different, their tastes and speeds and priorities are entirely different than traditional readers (Maybe I need to do a post on this topic because it's really fascinating.)

But this also meant I had a lot of catching up to do, just from a reading stand point. The big authors in the indie world aren't even known by most in the "traditional" world. I started out struggling to find my foothold and get "into" the books I was picking up. I found a few gems early on and was obsessed with those (in part, I've realized because they're the first books I got INTO in years. I'd been in a reading rut for a while now). But they were still pretty slow going. Then I did a summer reading challenge in one of my reader Facebook groups (Indie Fantasy Addicts. I owe a lot of my 2019 reads to recs from here) and read some more.

Then, in the fall, I like... couldn't stop reading. I got into a legitimate habit of picking up my phone (kindle APP!)  during off *minutes* and reading more of my current read. Yes, sometimes that meant reading a paragraph at a time. I read during every break at work. In the hours after I woke up, went to sleep, before getting out of my car to go into work. After getting off work and being too tired to drive yet (swing shift life).  I may have also read a page or two during work potty breaks. While hubby drove us to restaurants or the gym (also, at the gym) or the grocery store. Like, all the time (yes, he got annoyed with me but I COULDN'T STOP). There is a particular author that I blame for much of this book obsession because 13 of the 16 books I read in those 6 weeks were by her. But we'll get there.

I ended up reading over 60 books (of varying lengths. A few were definitely short) and I read so many good books, I want to do a full post on the amazing books I read in 2019 because they deserve a little recognition! So here goes! All the books I read in 2019, with mini reviews of each.


To start off the year I read a FANTASTIC book




https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25820414-rhapsodic

This book was impressively well written (she did a non-linear timeline which is very hard to pull off. I only read one other indie book that tried this and they didn't do it nearly as well as Laura.) Plus I loved the romance. Just the right amount of angsty-ness, danger, sweetness and surprise. I still suggest this book OFTEN. Although I have to admit that I haven't read the sequels.

Next, I read another book I LOVED and obsessed over and still suggest to readers:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23127048-air-awakens

This book was a bit Avatar the Last Airbender and a bit typical YA fantasy romance (dark prince, girl finding out she has powers etc etc) but I loved it. Again, another one I didn't finish the series of, though. This one I was into for 4 of 5 books. I have reasons for not liking book 5, again mostly to do with the focus shifting to conflicts I just don't care about and away from the things that kept me interested to start with.

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Another series I really liked (and YAY! Completed!). I suggest this one a good amount too because it has one of my favorite tropes: tortured soul love interest *swoons* (laughing at myself, but not joking!)

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Next I read a couple books I didn't love but enjoyed well enough:

I also started several books that I never finished. I didn't include any of those in my count.

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I read a few books by friends: Two beta read books, one which is included in the count because it's a third book in a series in which 2 books are already published, one which is not under contract to be published so it's not on Goodreads. The other two, were already published when I read them :)

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Then, I began the summer reading challenge with Indie Fantasy Addicts Facebook group in which books read = points for your team. My team WON!!! (no really thanks to me. We had a few ringers in our group that read LITERALLY 10x the number I did)

I read several books and novellas during the summer challenge, though not as many as I was hoping for! Easily my favorite of the bunch was God's of Men by Barbara Kloss, whom I sent a pleading email to asking 1) WHERE IS BOOK TWO and also 2) Be my friend? So now we're besties (aka Facebook friends ;) ) and I'm pretty sure she's going to let me beta read book 2 so SCORE.




This book was creepy (in the best way) and beautiful with an elaborate word and fantastic characters and I cannot wait for book 2! EEEEEPP

A fantasy book I read for the challenge without realize it *wasn't* indie. Oops. This one has a huge following but I wasn't a huge fan. It read much like a category romance novel with some vampire aspects thrown in, and that just isn't my forte.

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Next, I read this series.

Actually, I started reading book 1 of this series, because a couple enthusiastic fans recommended it in Indie Fantasy Addicts and I was pretty into it right from the start, which actually turned out to be a problem because at the 25% mark something big and unexpected happened that I DID NOT like. Like, I was mad at the author for this twist and for a while refused to keep reading. Several months later I was convinced to push past that twist, and *liked* book 1. Didn't love. But again, fans told me "keep reading!" (This is why fandoms are awesome) so I did and it only took a few chapters into book 2 to be hooked and I LOVED it by the end.

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A few contemporary romance books I read for kicks. Not my go-to genre but I'll do them on occasion. They're usually pretty easy reads that catch your attention right away.

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Some fae market research! I didn't count A Court of Thorns and Roses, even though I did also (kinda) read it this year because I read 3/4 of it two years ago. I kinda hated it. But the fandom is SO BIG, and I knew book 2 was most of what people loved so I picked it up where I left off which is why books 2 and 3 are here but not 1. And yes, I jump aboard the fandom love train and am totally team Rhys (he's my favorite type of Love Interest). I also read two books of Trial by Fae series. It was cute, enjoyable and I could have continued reading but I wasn't IN LOVE (and if there is one trend you can catch on to it's that I don't feel the need to finish series--or books for that matter-- if I don't LOVE them. Sometimes, I'm wrong and they get better as they go, but I'll wait for someone to smack some sense into my before I force my way through it to find out. haha)

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Then... I came across a Facebook ad for a book about a girl who starts a relationship (friendship-mostly) with a demon summoned by her uncle and I was super psyched about the potential.

I read the book (and the next one,) loved the book, then proceeded to read nearly everything by this author. I could write a whole post about just these two series and how they intertwine so fascinatingly. I honestly never would have picked up the Guild Codex books on their own. I've seen Three Mages and a Margarita around all over the place but it's clearly branded as quirky and fluffy paranormal, not really my thing.

 But because the characters of those books were in these, and she left they perfect little easter eggs that piqued my curiosity, I picked the other series up. It was exactly what I expected, which was quirky and light-hearted--obviously not a BAD thing, just not what I'm usually into. I kept reading because it was interesting and the characters and world were fun. It was one I could have easily been content to stop after one book but I kept going to find out more (you don't really get into any Demonized parallels until book 4 so those clues were still unanswered until then) and when I got to a part where the characters from Taming Demons get involved I'm super hooked, PLUS a previously sidelined romance that I am HERE FOR comes into focus--I'm hooked. Neither of these series are complete, and I'm dying to read more of both of them now!

I read both of these series because of how they connect. I am not, however, the kind of reader that usually reads books just because I know and like the author (unless I literally *know* them.) But then I found another book series by Annette that had that *demon slow burn romance* angle by her and had to try it (this is my new favorite trope by the way. I love almost-villain, almost inhuman (but not totally), definitely dangerous and definitely powerful, love interests.)

And this series is possibly my favorite of all my 2019 reads. Ash, I've decided, is my favorite Book Boyfriend of all time, he's a bit Rhys like (Although I say he's a bit more like Azriel, if you've read ACOTAR you'll know who I mean). Dangerous and tortured. Yes, please.

I sill have a few Annette Marie series on my TBR list, but I'm obviously a fan. I definitely trust her as an author and she uses some of my favorite tropes--so yes, I'll be back for more soon. (The next Guild Codex book comes out Jan 3rd!!)


I did miss a few books on this list, but this is the gist of my 2019 reading journey. I only read a couple traditionally published books ( 6, I think?). A large majority of what I read was what I am now writing--indie fantasy with romance. So I feel like I did a good job on my year of market research! I read some authors with solid followings (some of the series are years old but still selling well) as well as a few that were on the Amazon top 100 at the time I read them. We'll see if I can manage to do this well next year (60 isn't impressive for everyone, but for me--it's definitely a record). I will definitely keep reading a lot, but it'll probably depend on what I get hooked on if I can keep this pace up (Annette Marie helped a lot!)

I can't wait to find my new book loves in 2020!

What did you read in 2019? Do you have any reading goals for 2020??

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All the giveaways!

Hey guys! Sea of Treason releases in just over TWO WEEKS! And I'm celebrating my release month with a bunch of cool giveaways. 

First up, is the chance to win a $200 amazon Gift card. All you have to do it click the link and follow the authors on the list on Instagram. Boom. Entered!

Enter here

Book lovers prize pack giveaway!

Want to win these awesome #bookish prizes? 

-"Read and be happy" pillow cover. 

-"I read past my bedtime" necklace. 

-A hand made (by me!) book page flower bouquet (vase not included as shipping would be a pain)

-Two awesome YA fantasy paperbacks

-Plus some personalized Sea of Treason swag

Enter here

Also, you have the chance to get a bunch of awesome eBooks for free, including Sea of Treason! It's kind of a secret link, if you don't go here soon you'll have to pay for the book once it's up for sale. Get it now while you have the chance (and please, please leave a review!!)

Click here to find free books!

I also have another BIGGER giveaways planned before the end of the month and I'll update this post when it's live. You'll have the chance to win $350 amazon gift card by following authors on Bookbub. 

Til then! 

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Inspiration Tuesday: True Value

I am so very, very little. Inconsequential.

There are many things people use to prop themselves up. An "I'm better than you" attitude. The one that drives me the most crazy, is when people use religion (belief in God, spirituality, whatever) to raise themselves up. To stick their nose up in the air and show how much better they are than everyone else. 

Beware of those people, they don’t really know God.

Pay more attention to the person who gives without being noticed. The truly honorable are those that know how little they are. Small. Meaningless.

We are dust in the wind, tossed around, here one moment and gone the next. We want so badly to mean something. To be something. So we pretend. We do everything we can to build ourselves up, to show everyone around us something we deem worthy.

Beautiful. Powerful. Confident. Rich. Smart. Strong. Charming.

Those are the things we want other people to think we are, but they never give us the satisfaction we crave. They are never enough. Because there is always someone else who is… more. And then there are the people who see, who notice to places we lack. We put so much energy into that thing we want people to see, that we inevitably miss something else.

 We may be rich, but we are angry all the time. We may be beautiful, but we hate ourselves. We may be charming, but we are lonely. Our bodies may be strong, but our hearts are so very weak.

So when someone sees those flaws, it feels like the end of the world—destruction of the very walls we worked so hard to build. Except, with God, those flaws have value. Those flaws have a purpose. Those things give us perspective on God’s power.

True value, lies not in things we can see. Not in things we notice right away.

Value is in our actions. In our words. In our hearts.

Value is in the way we affect those around us.

Make someone smile, that’s worth a whole lot more than making someone jealous. That effect lasts so much longer. Is so much bigger.

Be a friend to someone lonely. Give to someone who won’t be able to give back.

By being okay with being small, in the eyes of many, we make ourselves bigger. Most of the people around us won’t even notice those things, because they’re not things we see. They’re not things that make us, individually, bigger and better. They make someone else bigger. They help someone else’s life become more satisfying.

That is value.

And that is what will make you love your life, so much more than being “big” by the world’s standards. Be big in the eyes of a child. Be big in the eyes of the hurt. Be big in the eyes of those who need it most.

By doing that, you’ll be big in the eyes of God as well.

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COVER REVEAL TIME

I've been working hard writing a new series, creating a shiny new author website (www.staceytrombley.com) and that site happens to include a few *other* new things, like my logo (above) and two new book covers.

SO, why not reveal all of those things all at once to my amazing readers? (that's you ;))

 Sea Of Treason is a YA historical fantasy with pirates and sirens and forbidden love. And now I have covers for books 2 AND 3 in that series ready.

One of the interesting things about indie publishing is that it moves at a much quicker pace than traditional. The books in my trilogy will be released less than a month apart, and I have all three covers ready so... why not share them now? Some authors will wait for book 1 to be released to reveal the next cover and so on but... I'm not that patient ;)


Soo.... want to see my covers???? (rhetorical question ;) )

 I love the how these covers show Whitley's transition from high-society lass, to bad ass pirate.

Pirate's Bluff #2 The sirens are coming. Both from the sea, and inside Whitley's own mind. She can only outrun them for so long. Bluff must find a way to save Whiltey from her own magic before it crushes them both.

 Pirate's Bluff #3 There is no escape. The same power Captain Stede and the siren queen so desperately desire is the secret to Whitley and Bluff's survival, but using it will destroy them. So first they must uncover the truth behind the prophecy that set the target on their backs.


 All three books in my Pirate's Bluff series will be published this summer/fall! Subscribe to my newsletter below to keep up on all my bookish news (Hint: I'll be looking for ARC readers VEEEERY soon)

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Why I Love Writers

The world will never quite understand me. Even those who love me, will never get what it is that drives me to write. They won't know the years I've spent working on my craft, the amount of energy and hope and life I've put into an imaginary world filled with imaginary people, the hours I've spent researching and seeking the best avenues to publish.

But you do.

You are my people-- the only people who UNDERSTAND! The only ones who really can.  It’s okay for other people not to get it, not to see all the work that goes on behind the scenes. The panic and the tears we shed. The passion we share. The many many many many hours we put into this “little” “hobby” of ours.

Publishing is NOT easy. It doesn’t matter which stage you are in, writing/editing/querying your first book, your 18th, or publishing your 5th. This process is GRUELING.

And yet, we keep going. We spend months, if not years working on the same story that may never actually see the light of day. We dust ourselves off after every rejection and we keep working. We keep dreaming.

We work to get better. We SEEK criticism because it might help us be better, help us find that magic formula for best-seller-dom.

We dream the same dream and though our set backs are often individual to each of us, they aren’t so different that we can’t all relate.

No matter who you are, what you write or how long you’ve been doing it—You are my tribe. And I love you!

If you're a writer-- of any kind, shape, or experience-- you are incredible.

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A Pitch Wars Mentor's Real Reward

Someone once asked me about being a Pitch Wars Mentor, "But what do you get out of it?"

Pitch Wars is a contest for authors seeking representation (a massive step towards becoming traditionally published.)

Brenda Drake, selected some qualified members of the publishing industry (mostly agented/published authors) who were willing to spend months of their own time mentoring one promising author, hopefully giving them a leg up towards meeting their goal of publishing success!

I am one of those mentors
 (or at least I have been since PW year #2)


I give a few weeks of my time, reading through the 70-100 submissions sent to me in order to find a book I personally want to see published. We then spend two months working with that author to make their full manuscript SHINE! Sometimes this means big revisions, other times it means just some sprucing or somewhere in between. Then we send their lovelies into the world, hoping agents,(followed by editors) will love them and sign them, and eventually turn their words into a real live book.

Pitch Wars mentors don't get paid for any of this. Not even if/when one of those authors is published because of PW. All I expect, as I've said many times before, is a signed copy once it's published.

So what do I get out of it?

Well, I first volunteered because I wanted to continue to be a part of this amazing community of writers. I entered as an aspiring author the first year PW existed, and even once I became published, I didn't want to give it up!

I've met some amazing friends through Pitch Wars. Some great, amazing and successful authors, who are all willing to help each other out whenever possible. That means they've helped promote my books, and they've also helped me revise some of the WIPs (work in progress).

That's reason enough, to be honest.

But there is one thing that is bigger than all the rest. One REAL reason I do this. One reason this is all worth it.

YES! THAT IS ONE OF MY MENTEE BOOKS!

I picked Amanda Searcy's book, then titled TRUTH IS, out of my "slush pile" during Pitch Wars 2015. I spent months working with her on this book. She then went on to snag an agent AND a book deal in a matter of weeks after Pitch Wars.

I realize that I can only take so much credit, because this book was amazing (seriously guys, that ending? Believe me I had nothing to do with that. Read it to find out ;)) but the fact that I had a hand in helping this book get published is an amazing feeling.  Seeing my name in the acknowledgements? Holding a personally signed copy? Is a feeling only second to holding my own book, with my own name on the cover ;)

I am SO PROUD of Amanda and her accomplishments. She did this, I was just there to help her along the way a little.

Being that little part of her author-story is the best reward any mentor can ever have ever. 

Check out her book here!
http://www.amandasearcybooks.com/books/

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To All The Houses I Loved Before

This year, my husband and I decided to finally make the jump and buy a new and nicer house, closer to where he works. Right now he’s driving an hour to work, 5 days a week. Wowzer! Cutting that drive down to 15-30 minutes was going to make a huge difference!

What we didn’t anticipate was that, apparently,  we picked the worst time in the last decade to buy a house (literally!) Who knew it was a seller’s market? Cause we didn’t. We also didn’t know that April is the WORST month of the year to buy, followed by May. Good times. Not until we started losing houses in multiple offer situations left and right did we realize we had to catch up to reality real fast.

 After seeing 34 houses and putting offers on SIX of them, we finally got an offer accepted! But man, was that a journey. So many ups and down. So much doubt and fear and anger and ugh, not-funness. So this is my little slideshow of all the houses we missed out on, and how we ended up with the right house (cause that’s kind of a funny story on its own)

Once Upon A Time...

Our family finally got on board with the let's-buy-a-house idea and went to look at houses (an hour to an hour and a half away!) the second week in April. Not super committed to buying just yet, but willing to look. Then we found a house that hubby and his Dad LOVED. Apparently it reminded them of one of my husband’s childhood homes (they moved around tons but this was one of the few they actually owned and was apparently the nicest house they had) It was also pretty massive, with 3 big living spaces and 4 bedrooms. Size wise, it was really by far the most perfect house we’d find in any of our searches (we required 4 beds and at least 2 living spaces)

House #1

 To me this was a decent house, definitely had the space we needed but I wasn’t overly in love. Hubby sold me by telling me the formal living area would be mine. Dude, did I have all the ideas for that little room (it was going to be an Instagram and Pinterest worthy BOOKISH room, in my mind. With book stack floating shelves, and a book page wreath in the center. Several book shelves, my desk and of course some kind of fun seating etc etc)

We could have gotten that house if we’d know what the market was really like. But we ended up wasting time bartering over price and which left the door open for a second offer which won out.

(Update: this house sold for over asking which surprises me even now. We were offering a good chunk under... We were soooo oblivious to the market 😆)

House #2

THREE of the 4 houses we saw that first Sunday were sold by Wednesday. That kinda gave us a pretty good hint at what we were dealing with. But we still had a little learning to do.

Hubby found this house the day it came out (Tuesday night). We were like “okay, let’s go see it asap! How about Thursday?” HA! Naivety! It got multiple offers Wednesday. So we rushed out to go see it with ten minutes notice on Wednesday. (Remember, hour drive? Yeah.)  Yes, we had the toddler. We only got in one car accident though, so that was good.

This house required us to make a couple sacrifices but it had some other aspects that far out did our expectations. The kitchen was amazing and it had a huge extension family room with vaulted ceiling, big deck and pretty yard. *swoons*. We put in an offer immediately but because of some of those sacrifices some parties involved were not as on board and unwilling to offer asking. We’re pretty sure this one went for *over* asking price (I’ll be stalking Realtor.com’s Just Sold section for a while to see what all these houses sold for!)

(Update... yeah this one went for several thousand over asking. Funny side note, hubby had jokingly made a comment "we should just offer ____ and get it locked up immediately." ...It sold for more than that number)

House #3

This house was cheaper than all the rest but also had some sacrifices and some work that needed done. Even with a lower list price we still weren’t willing to meet asking. We were surprised to find it had multiple offers, actually, because of the work it needed (like a broken AC unit and a garage that looked structurally unsound (we planned to tear it down and build a bigger one)) I liked this house, but we did worry about it passing FHA.  Come to find out later hubby was just willing to go along with it this time to get the house hunting done with. He wasn’t as huge a fan. This one ended up back on the market and we didn’t try for it again because of that.

(Update: this house is pending)

House # 4

This house was PRETTY. Small, but beautiful. The town and neighborhood were awesome. It was at the top of our budget and needed some work to be fit for us. We needed a bigger yard so we planned to expand the backyard into the side lot, keeping the same pretty white fencing which is fairly costly. We also needed to move around some walls in the basement to make the room we needed. All doable. Nothing insane.

We went to see this house HOURS after it hit the market and offered asking that night. The realtor very clearly and openly used their weight to push us around a bit. In a seller’s market, the seller has the power and they used it. It’s a longer story than I’ll tell but they kept pushing back the time they said they'd respond to offers and a few days after we put in our offer they still hadn’t responded (asking us questions but unwilling to answer ours) waiting for more offers, which they got. Our emotions were super high at this point and we ended up pulling our offer before they decided. I do think it’s likely we would have gotten this house if we’d been patient. At the very least we were in the running.

(Update: this one ended up back on the market *mwahaha vindication!* but it was after we finally got another house in contract. I knew it would still sell super quickly and I was right. Within a few days it was back in pending status. It's still pending now)

House #5

This was the closest thing to a fixer upper that we looked at (though we considered others, just not seriously enough to go see them). It was in a very, very nice neighborhood, many of the houses around were valued a good amount higher than this one. It was definitely big enough (though it still required a little twisting to fit exactly what we needed since it was 3 beds). It needed a lot of cosmetic updates. It was dark, the carpet stained or loose in places, dented doors etc. but we were totally willing to do the work and by the time we were done we knew we’d have a very highly valued home which was awesome. I soooo wanted to live here and I honestly thought we’d get this one! We offered barely under asking and heard no word of other offers… until they called to tell us they took a different one. Apparently the other offer was a conventional loan, ours was FHA so they took it just based on that (FHA has a tougher inspection. I know it needed a little work, but nothing that I thought would fail an inspection  (you almost always have to do a little bit with these loans but they're small things. Fix this window, repaint this..) which makes me wonder if there was more wrong with the house than we knew)

(Update: Yup, they sold the house for less than we offered them 🙁 )

Tired of bad news yet? Cause we were. I was ready to give up after house #3. The emotional roller coaster of finding a place you decide you want to live for the next decade+ to find out they picked someone else to live there… was tough. Every time we thought it might be it. Every time it was crushing to hear no.

Every time. 

We learned a lot through the process though, about which neighborhoods we wanted and which we didn’t. We realized we needed a large enough drive way because the city we were (mostly) looking in didn’t allow street parking overnight. We decided we weren't willing to settle for less than a 2 car garage. You’d think we’d get less specific as time went on but we learned a lot about what we needed and about the neighborhood (we did sacrifice on number of bedrooms, just so long as there was room for us to make a fourth)

I also prayed a lot. I prayed for the right house, and I also prayed for deals to fall through if it wasn’t the right one. God obviously answered that prayer. But as time went on, I definitely wondered if the right house even existed.

The Tuesday after house #5 fell through, we found a new-on-the-market  house that looked really nice. We knew we’d have to see it quickly. So we set up showings for that house and three others for the next day (The others were just filler, not super promising but worth seeing since we'd be up there anyway. You never know!) But while we were getting ready to leave for those showings we got a call that the house we *really* wanted to see had accepted another offer. Great. We scrolled through the listings again to see if we could find something to replace it but they were all reaches. I clicked on one house, while getting the toddler ready to walk out the door that I hadn’t seen. It was a brand new listing. Looked decent. I sent it to our realtor before I even showed my husband. We were unsure about the neighborhood, comps, the garage and the drive way because we didn’t have time to look into them much. Luckily the house was vacant so we could set up a last minute showing.

On the way, I googled a bit while hubby drove. Good neighborhood (we’d seen a few houses in the same neighborhood. Actually, funnily, the VERY first house we saw was further up the same street). Right near a great elementary school (we could walk there). Street view on Google Maps showed the garage was definitely 2 cars.

Hubby declared the drive way big enough as soon as we pulled up to the house. He was inside 30 seconds before me (had to get a jacket on the little guy since it was raining) and he said he was "sold" as soon as I walked in. Well, that was fast! But it really was perfect. Not as perfect as the very first house we saw, size wise (we’ll need to finish a room in the basement to be a bedroom) but better in a few other areas (like location, schools etc). The house was listed a under our budget so we offered a bit over the asking price.

We got the house. So, it was worth it.

If that other house hadn’t popped up and sold when it did, we may not have seen this house quickly enough. Just by *chance* (or divine intervention ;) ) we happened to find it and add it to our showings within an hours notice. I find that pretty awesome haha!

So that's our story. Honestly, it feels a bit surreal that we actually got a happy ending, We got a house that's great, that I'm super psyched about, but I think a lot of those houses will still be in my mind as time goes on. I wish I had a magic wand and could morph together all my favorite things about all those houses. 

But today I'll have to say goodbye to all the houses I loved before! 

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